by Kira Archer
Eric sighed, a defeated sound that ricocheted through Natalie like a piece of heated steel. “Fine. Tell Courtney I’ll pick her up at eight.”
Eric dropped his phone to the counter and Natalie sucked in a tremulous breath. The sound of his fist making contact with some hard surface made her jump.
All the tender moments of the last day flew through her mind, each one now cast in the ugly light of betrayal. It had felt so real. So natural. So wonderful. And it had all been a lie. The second Mommy put her foot down Eric had obeyed, despite what doing so would do to Natalie. The back-up plan was no longer needed. His parents would never approve of him keeping his little stray, especially when a thoroughbred was ready and waiting. And after all, Nat could be bought off. Right? And Eric had just proven yet again that he’d do what his parents wanted. She should have known better. She had known better. She’d just let herself get sucked into the fantasy.
A lump formed in her throat and her eyes burned with tears she refused to let fall. No. She wasn’t going to make some big scene this time. She wasn’t going to scream and cry and make a total fool of herself. Not like she’d done when Steve had walked out on her. This time she’d keep some dignity. The lump in her throat grew and she swallowed, trying to ease the pressure. She’d thought she’d known what it felt like to have her heart break. And she did. This…this was so much worse. Her heart wasn’t breaking; it was shattering into a million pieces.
She had to get out of there. She would not let him see her cry…again.
Nat walked through the kitchen, ignoring Eric when he called her name. She ran down the stairs and grabbed her boots from near the door, shoving her feet into them a little more forcefully than necessary. Eric followed her, calling her name, but he couldn’t follow her outside in nothing but his boxer briefs. She opened the door and forced herself to take deep breaths. She could lose it when she got home. Not until then.
“Natalie!”
Nat’s eyes flew open and through her tear-blurred vision she caught a brief glimpse of Eric at the top of the stairs. She closed the door and bolted. Eric looked beaten, stricken even. Her head spun with confusion. It took a special kind of asshole to pull off what Eric had apparently been pulling. But up until fifteen minutes earlier, Nat would have bet everything that whatever had been between them had been real. And that was the real bitch of it, wasn’t it? She had bet everything. Her business. Her heart. Her soul. And she’d lost. There was no way she was going to sit around and let him, or his parents, gloat over it. Not while it was still a raw wound that seared her with pain every time she took a breath.
She took off down the street at a brisk walk. She had a few minutes on him. He’d had nothing but a blanket wrapped around his waist. He’d have to get dressed before coming after her. If he even bothered to come. Just in case, she took the scenic route home, cutting through an alley or two until she was sure he couldn’t follow her trail. Nat let her breath out, impatiently dashing away the tears that came with it.
Her phone rang. Eric. It kept blaring from the recesses of her purse. Nat hit Ignore. She couldn’t talk to him yet. She would. But not yet. The phone rang again. Ignore. Again. Ignore. By the time she reached her apartment, she gave up and just shut the damn thing off.
She hauled her sorry butt up the stairs to her apartment. Gina met her at the door, phone in her hand, mouth open ready to interrogate her. But one look at Natalie’s face and Gina zipped it, pulling her inside.
“Who do I need to kill?”
Nat snorted through her tears. She could always count on Gina. “No one. I’m fine.”
“This,” Gina said, waving at Nat, “isn’t fine. What the hell did Eric do?”
“It’s my own damn fault.”
“Doubtful.”
Gina’s phone rang and she glanced at the screen. “It’s Eric. He’s called twice already asking if you’ve showed up here.”
“Ignore him.”
Gina hit Ignore and tossed her phone onto the counter. “Spill it. He’s worried sick.”
Nat shook her head. “Yeah. I’m sure he is.”
Gina folded her arms. Nat took a deep breath and filled her in.
“That…that…fucking asshole!” she said, once Nat had finished.
“Yeah.”
“Had he mentioned anything about buying you out, at all?”
Nat paused, the money his mother had mentioned having momentarily slipped her mind in the aftermath of Eric shoving her aside for his parents’ pick of the litter.
“No. Never.”
Gina shook her head. “It doesn’t make any sense.”
“What doesn’t? We knew from day one he wanted that garage.”
“Yeah, but…”
“But what?”
“I don’t know. It just seemed like you two were getting along so well.”
“Yeah. I thought so, too. But, he must have just been using me until he could talk his parents into giving him the money or something. He was certainly using me for something else. His parents are never going to approve of me and that seems to be all that matters to him.”
“Ah sweetie.” Gina pulled her in for a hug.
They sat on the couch and Nat finally let go. She let the tears come, let the pain pour out. And God it hurt like nothing she’d ever felt before. This is why she’d closed herself off for so long. She’d never wanted to feel this kind of pain again, and yet there she was, feeling her heart disintegrate, one little piece at a time.
When she’d finally cried herself out, Gina stood and went to get her a bottle of water. Nat went into the bathroom and splashed cold water on her face. Her eyes were already red and swollen, but the water helped a bit. Until she caught the faint scent of Eric and realized she still wore his T-shirt. Tears threatened to erupt again, but she choked them back this time. She was done crying over him. Nat came back out of the bathroom and gratefully downed the water Gina held out to her.
A knock at the door had them both glaring before they even heard Eric call out.
“Nat? You there?”
Gina looked at her. “What do you want me to do? Want me to get rid of him?”
Nat took a deep breath and wiped her eyes. “No. Might as well get this over with.”
Gina frowned but went to open the door. Eric barreled right past her on a beeline for Nat. He reached out to touch her but she backed up and he dropped his hand, a frown creasing his forehead.
“Nat, look, I know we need to talk. You obviously overheard… I wanted to explain but you didn’t answer my calls.”
“You’ve got a lot of nerve showing up here, you son of a bitch,” Gina said.
Eric turned to her, glaring. “No offense, Gina, but butt the hell out. I came here to talk to Natalie, not you.”
Before Gina could retaliate, Nat held up her hand. “It’s okay, Gina. I’ll take care of it.”
Gina sent Eric another death look but headed to her bedroom. “I’ll be in here if you need me.”
Nat nodded and turned to Eric, her arms crossed across her stomach as though physically holding herself together might help her keep a grip on her emotions.
“Why did you leave? Why did you just walk out without a word? I know you must have heard about the ball. But we could have talked…” Eric asked.
“What good does talking do? The only people you listen to are your parents. And you screwing me over for another woman isn’t the only issue here. Are you really not even going to mention the money your mom just gave you to buy me out? Or the whole we won’t fund your costs unless you get rid of her because she’s too big a risk thing?”
Eric’s frown deepened. “None of that was my idea. I didn’t agree to any of it.”
“Oh, don’t give me that,” Nat snapped, her tenuous hold on her emotions fraying further at his dodge. “You’ve wanted that garage since the second you realized your aunt left it to me. I just didn’t realize you’d stoop so low to get it.”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
“You
know you wanted it!”
“Yes, I did, but you obviously think I’ve done something about it and it would be really nice if you’d share just what exactly I’m supposed to have done because I have no fucking clue why you are so pissed at me!”
“I’m pissed because I don’t like being used! If you wanted to buy me out, all you had to do is say so.”
“You said you wouldn’t sell.”
Nat’s heart dropped. “So you did want to buy me out.”
“I already told you, I don’t have the money to do that. My parents never said a word about funding me until that phone call. And we came to our little compromise, which I thought was working great, so I never brought it up with them again. If you had an issue with our arrangement, why didn’t you say something?”
“I didn’t think I needed to. You knew how I felt about selling.”
“Right. Which is why nothing you are saying is making any sense.”
“So you expect me to believe that your mother just decided, out of the blue, to give you the money you need to ‘buy out that food truck woman’? You know, if you wanted me gone, all you had to do was say so. I never wanted your bakery. All I wanted was to be able to keep my garage and maybe rent some kitchen space from you. I wasn’t ever trying to cheat or con you out of anything. We could have kept to ourselves; we didn’t need to have any more contact than necessary. But no, you decided you’d just sit back and let me do all the work getting the bakery up and running and right when it’s ready to launch, you just swoop in with a big old check to buy me out of my garage and make me go away. And hell, why not have a little fun on the side, too? Might as well get a piece of ass while you’re at it, right?”
Eric stepped closer. “My God, Natalie, you can’t possibly believe that! That is not what happened. I don’t know what Courtney is doing talking to my mother, or what she told her about you or the bakery.”
“While we’re at it, why don’t you tell me the truth for once about Courtney? Is she your girlfriend? Fiancée?”
“I already told you she’s not!”
“Well, I’m sorry if I don’t believe you, but there’s obviously more to your relationship than just an old family friend if a few words from her to your mother lands a hundred grand in your lap! Not to mention the fact that you can’t seem to stop dumping me the second she wants you for something.”
“Nat, I didn’t lie to you about Courtney or anything else. I only agreed to take her to the ball because my dad needs to impress his investors, the chief of whom is Courtney’s father. I don’t have a choice. As for the rest, I don’t know what the hell is going on. Yes, I’d asked my parents for the money to get things running but they hadn’t said anything for the past two months—until this morning. There were certainly no conditions of you leaving when we first discussed it. And I never thought or said that you would try to come back and try to claim ownership.”
“How am I supposed to believe that?”
“Because you know me, Nat.”
Nat stared at him, wanting to believe him. But the timing was incredibly suspicious. Now that all the work was done and the bakery was ready to open, suddenly his mother hands him the money he needs to get rid of her? And being thrown over for Courtney or any woman wasn’t something she was prepared to forgive. A knock sounded at the door and Nat blew out a breath. Who the hell could that be?
She stomped over and yanked the door open. A surprised-looking courier stood there with a thick envelope in his hands.
“Miss Natalie Moran?” he asked.
“Yes.”
“These are for you.” He handed her the envelope and took off before Nat could ask what it was.
She stuck her finger under the glued flap and ripped it open, pulling out a thick sheaf of folded papers from a law firm. She read through them quickly, her eyesight beginning to blur again as the words “injunction,” “cease all use,” “pending appeal” and other phrases signaled the end of all her hard work and dreams.
Nat looked up at Eric, her face a frozen mask. Eric took a step closer.
“Nat…”
“Get out,” she said, her words barely more than a whisper.
“What?”
She held up the papers. “An injunction from your family’s lawyer, on behalf of his client, Mr. Eric Gerard Schneider, that prohibits me from using the garage until such time as the appeal of your aunt’s will has been heard in court.”
“What?” Eric’s face paled and he took a step toward her. “Nat…I didn’t…”
“Get. Out.”
“I didn’t do this, Nat. I mean, I agreed to them looking into the will, but that was before. I didn’t think…”
Nat threw the papers at him. “It’s your name on those papers, Eric! What, it wasn’t enough to just lie to me and use me, you had to go and take everything from me? I guess your precious lawyer found a way around buying me out, didn’t he?”
“Nat…”
“I can’t believe you’d do this! I thought you were different. You acted all noble. The hardworking black sheep, going against his family to make his own way in the world, right? But instead you are just a spoiled little trust fund brat. You didn’t get your way so you ran to your rich mommy to bail you out. I should have known that whole ‘I want to do it on my own’ routine was a load of shit when I saw your house.”
“That is not what happened!”
“Oh, that’s right, the house was from your grandparents. That makes it much better.”
“You are such a hypocrite! I’m a spoiled little rich boy for taking the brownstone my grandparents left me when they died, but it’s perfectly acceptable for you to take the garage my aunt left you?”
“That’s different and you know it.”
“No, it’s not! And it’s not even the point. Where I live has nothing to do with anything.”
“No, you’re right. The point is you lied and manipulated me to get what you wanted and when that didn’t work you asked your parents to throw some money at it. Well, you can’t buy me, Eric!”
“I’m not trying to buy you, I didn’t even know about that money.”
“You used me—”
“I didn’t use you any more than you used me! You seem to forget that you were getting something out of this deal too. You agreed to help for free kitchen time—”
“Free? I worked my ass off for the right to use your kitchen. You wouldn’t even have a kitchen to use if it wasn’t for me. And the second the bakery is up and running and you don’t need me anymore, the money you need to get rid of me just magically falls in your lap. Kind of a strange coincidence, don’t you think? I’m not some gold digger just looking for a payday. Do you have any idea how insulting this all is?”
“Would you just listen?”
“Listen to what? You can’t excuse this, Eric.”
“I know there’s no excuse for it, but it was just a mistake. I didn’t think any of this would happen. My dad suggested looking into you and challenging the will and I said yes just to get him off my back. I didn’t think they’d be able to do anything about it and I certainly didn’t think they’d find anything on you that would concern them. And while I may not agree with their conclusions, I’m sorry but I can see why they might be concerned. The situations are a little too similar.”
An icy chill ran through Nat’s blood and settled like a hard ball in the pit of her stomach. “What situations?”
Eric’s eyes searched hers for a moment and then he blew out a frustrated breath. “When you try to claim something that isn’t yours until you get a check big enough to make you go away.”
Nat’s breath left her in a rush, like he had hauled back and sucker punched her in the gut. “You know about that? What did you guys do, have me investigated? What gives you the right to go digging into my life?”
“It wasn’t my choice, but honestly I didn’t think it would matter because I assumed there’d be nothing to find. Instead, they find out you seem to have a sort of habit of…”
“Of what? Working my ass off with someone I thought was my partner and then getting screwed? Because from my view point that’s the only thing happening here. How dare you—”
“For the hundredth time, I didn’t run the background checks. My parents did. They were just looking out for me and apparently they had a reason to be concerned. You have to admit, it looks bad, Nat. What am I supposed to think?”
“You are supposed to trust me! These situations are nothing alike. I wrote that cookbook that Steve published. Every page. Every recipe is mine. He stole it. He put his name on it. And because he was the first one to turn it in, I got screwed! Trying to prove intellectual property is next to impossible, especially when he had a whole team of high-priced lawyers on his side. So yes, I took money from him, even though it was far less than what he actually owed me and I only took it because he’d taken everything else from me and I needed to survive. I wanted to start over. So when he offered me half of the advance money for my book, I took it. But I certainly didn’t try and con some poor victim out of something I had no right to. And I definitely wouldn’t have done it to you!”
Eric shoved a hand through his hair. “Nat, I didn’t—”
“No. You know what, Eric, I’m done. This,” she said, waving her hands between them, “whatever this is, it’s over. Done. Just go.”
“Natalie, you can’t just throw me out. This was just a stupid mistake that never should have happened. Just wait—”
“No! I’m done. Get out!” Nat screamed.
Gina came running, took one look at Nat’s face and advanced on Eric with murder in her eyes. Eric held up his hands and backed toward the door.
“Fine, I’ll leave, but this isn’t over, Nat. I’m going to fix this.”
Gina slammed the door in his face and Nat collapsed on the couch.
“Oh, God,” Nat murmured, her head dropping into her hands.
She wanted to be strong, wanted to be the ballsy heroine she always saw in the movies. The type that gets into an impossible scrape but is able to pull herself up and outwit the bad guys. But that was fiction and this was real life. And Nat just didn’t see any way of winning this one.